So loved was fasting to our fathers
the monks, that they made of it their lifestyle.

They fast, with the exception of feast
days their whole life. They did not suffer from physical fatigue but
discovered in it spiritual delight, found satisfaction and became
accustomed to it.

It was once said that on one occasion,
at the advent of Lent in the desert, a herald was sent calling upon
monks and drawing their attention to the sacred fast. When one of the
elders heard the herald's exhortation, he said to him: "Son, what is it
this fast you are talking about? I am not aware of it because all my
days are the same. (Ie. that all of them are days of
fasting)."

Saint Paula the anchorite used to eat
only half a loaf of bread at sunset.

Some monks used to fast every day until
sunset like a holy monk who once said; "Thirty years have passed by
during which the sun has not seen me eating".

Some monks used to fast for days. Saint
Makarius the Alexandrian, for example, fasted though out the year and
ate only once week during the Holy Lent, while visiting the Monasteries
of Saint Pachomius.

The fasting of our fathers, were not
confined to specific periods, or the length of time, but also as form of
monasticism, applied it to the kind of food they ate.

Abba Nofer, the anchorite, ate dates from
a palm tree at his place of seclusion. Saint Moses the anchorite, as
well as Saint Pigimy, another anchorite, ate desert grass and drank from
the morning dew.

Consistent fasting regulated the lives
of the Fathers.

This lifestyle of a monk becomes
comforting and harmonious for both the body and the soul, and we have
discussed this issue before here on
st-takla.org in other pages. A stable
lifestyle, to which they become accustomed which regulates their lives.

As for the pitied laymen, they sway from one extreme to another when fasting. They deprive
themselves of food only to break their fast to partake of anything they
desire.

They abstain for a while, to allow
themselves what they want for another period, then go back to
indulgence, thus they sway between abstention and indulgence. They
build, then destroy, and then build again, only to demolish again
without recovery.

True fasting is to train oneself in
self-control, to follow for the rest of your life.

Self-control becomes a blessing for his
life, not only during the time of fasting when we change the time and
the food we eat, but also during the normal days.

In this context, fasting is not a
punishment but a blessing.

Confessor fathers used to impose as a
sever form of punishment for their spiritual sons, to break their fast
early, to eat meat or appetising foods. This was done in order to abase
their spiritual sonís proud heart that thinks of itself to have become a
hermit or an ascetic. He would thus bring down his arrogance by making
him eat and feel abased to rid him of thoughts of vain glory.